Wednesday, December 4, 2013

Quick Post: CSU Wrap

The Buffs were shaky Tuesday night in Fort Collins. They were out-rebounded (40-38, including an allowed 16 offensive boards), incapable of hitting a three-pointer (3-19 beyond the arc), and posted a negative assist-to-turnover ratio (9:14). Still, somehow, they came up with the victory.

How? How else? Behind a Mayor-like performance from the great Spencer Dinwiddie.

Try this on for size, little brother: 28 points (19 of them coming in the second half), 11-11 from the line, four assists, two rebounds, two steals, and zero turnovers. Add that to his 29-point performance from a year ago, and Spencer owns this series in a way that has to burn the few CSU fans knowledgeable to enough to notice (Seriously, how were the Ram students not booing him every time he touched the ball? That's student section 101). That's a platform of results that should keep the Mayor in office for as long as he wants the job.

YOU-CAN'T-GUARD-HIM *clap**clap**clap-clap-clap* From: the BDC

Dinwiddie is the troll this series deserves; a player who not only runs his mouth to stoke the passions, but who emphatically backs up his talk to keep his team in the win column. You know, like what Bradlee Van Pelt (fuck him) was for the Rams in football. With Dinwiddie presumably turning pro in April, we might have seen the last of him against those in green and gold, but at least he went out with a bang.

Still, the cold reality is that the Buffs, outside of Spencer's heroics, did not play well enough to claim victory. In front of a hostile gym, they drew far too much iron from open looks, were too soft with the ball in many situations, and played below their true talent level. If they had lost, it would be a rough pill to swallow. However, CU found a way to win an ugly game, against a tough team, in an intense atmosphere. A good sign of the developing maturity of this still-young roster. That it was freshman like Dustin Thomas (five offensive rebounds), Wesley Gordon (held scorer JJ Avila to 4-19 shooting), and, especially, Jaron Hopkins (10 points, including back-to-back threes that tilted momentum for good) that had the best non-Dinwiddie performances of the evening only furthers the 'growing-up' narrative.

Bigger fish to fry, of course, so there is no time to savor the eighth belt-notch of the campaign. MF'n Kansas comes to town, and it will require more than the Buffs have shown to date to bag one of the biggest wins in program history. They've got three days to prepare, I hope they take full advantage.